Fraternal Order of the Raven

The courtyard and entrance to the Raven Headquarters.

“We dare defend our homeland.”

― Fraternal Order of the Raven's Motto

The Fraternal Order of the Raven is a Founders-affiliated organization in Columbia, concerned with maintaining the city's "racial purity." The Order was founded by a citizen known only as the First Zealot. Worshipers of the deceased Lady Comstock, they honor the symbols of the sword, the raven, and the coffin in her name (as contrasted with the sword, the key and the scroll, the holy symbols of Columbia). Their emblem is that of a stylized eye with five swords crossing behind it, and a banner which reads in Latin, "Audemus Patria Nostra Defendere", which means: "We dare to defend our homeland".

Ideology and Practice

The Union Army (United States of America), led by a demonized Abraham Lincoln.

The Confederate Army (Confederate States of America), led by an angelic George Washington.

The group glorifies John Wilkes Booth as a saint for assassinating Abraham Lincoln, "the Emancipator" or "the Apostate" (a term Zachary Hale Comstock often uses in reference to the same), whom they view as wicked for abolishing slavery. Members of the Order cloak themselves in hoods and robes reminiscent of the real-life Ku Klux Klan, with lesser members wearing indigo and leaders wearing black. The Order believes that Columbia's racist ideals make it and its citizens superior to the rest of the world, and they seek to enforce a doctrine of racial purity.

The most prominent members of the Order are the Zealots: fearsome, sword-carrying, coffin-bearing enemies whose powers mirror that of the Order's namesake. They count among the elite forces of the Founders, and are occasionally sent to kill Booker DeWitt.

BioShock Infinite

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A statue of John Wilkes Booth in the foyer.

The stained glass windows behind the bar.

Main article: BioShock Infinite

Booker discovers the Order's headquarters in Comstock Center on his journey to Monument Island. The courtyard has a statue of Comstock fighting the "Serpent of Nations", depicted as a hydra-like creature with gross caricatures of a Jewish, Black, and Asian man for its three heads. The building's interior is squalid, with debris littering the floor, lights dim and continually flickering, and raven droppings scattered throughout. Platters of rotten food are ubiquitous, especially in the dining hall, and attract many flies and ravens. There is also a statue of John Wilkes Booth in the foyer, a lounge, and bar which contains a painting of Booth, in golden glow, assassinating a Devil-horned Lincoln at Ford's Theater, a reading room, and a large ceremony hall.

A prisoner being murdered by ravens.

In the ceremony hall is a mural of George Washington holding the Liberty Bell in one hand and the Ten Commandments in the other, standing above racist caricatures of people of different ethnicities. While traversing the building, Booker clashes with several Order members when he happens upon their meeting.

After taking them out, Booker takes the elevator to the Top Floor. In the circular room is a round table for meetings, with a projector displaying a phrenological study of Comstock. Behind a bookcase is a hidden storage area with a dungeon cell as well as a Gear in a display case.

When Booker opens up the chained door, he witnesses a prisoner getting executed by murderous black birds, and sees the leader, a Crow, walk away and vanish. Breaking the chain, he walks into an indoor garden where victims are kept in golden cages hanging from trees. Suddenly, the black-robed Zealot appears again and starts attacking Booker, sword drawn and all. After the casket-carrying Zealot falls, Booker acquires the Murder of Crows Vigor. Upon exiting the building into the sunshine, the Gondola station to the Monument Island Gateway is just ahead.

New Discoveries

New Vigors

• Murder of Crows

Voxophones

1. Zachary Hale Comstock - The Gift of the Emancipator - On the bar counter.
2. Zachary Hale Comstock - The Lie of the Emancipator - In the chapel pew.
3. First Zealot - Symbols of Our Lady - On one of the office desks.

New Gear

1. 1 Gear (random)

Gallery

Fraternal Order Images

Member of Order (right) in concept art by Robb Waters.

"Comstock fights the Serpent of Nations" statue concept art.

Unused "Welcome Brother" sign.

The Crow, wearing a similar hooded attire to the Fraternal Order of the Raven.

Fraternal Order of the Raven - meeting.

"And today is the day we celebrate the secession."

Member of the Fraternal Order of the Raven in combat.

Order member using baton.

Order member using pistol.

Audemus Patria Nostra Defendere.

The round table on the top floor.

Hood of a member of the Fraternal Order of the Raven (Emporia, near scalp board).

Art and images in the Fraternal Order

The assassination of Lincoln viewed in a very positive light.

Mural of George Washington from behind the altar.

Film images from the Fraternal Order's phrenological study of Father Comstock's head, and comparing it to those of Indigenous Americans.

Behind the Scenes

• Several songs play in the Fraternal Order of the Raven.
  • The gramophone in the bar plays "Watermelon Party" by Polk Miller.
  • In the elevator room after the radio announcement about the terror in the raffle, Rudy Vallée's "Makin' Whoopee" will play.
  • The gramophone in the upstairs aviary plays Johann Sebastian Bach's "Air on the G String" with solo violin.
• Due to their appearance and ideology, the Fraternal Order of the Raven is based off the real-world Ku Klux Klan (specifically the second incarnation).
• Their aprons and headquarters are also reminiscent of Freemasonry, which is significant, as George Washington was a famous Freemason. This may also be found in The Art of BioShock Infinite, which show aspects of their attire were inspired and combined from the Freemasons, as well as military and religious orders from history. Revisions of their attire were also alternated with their inspirations, such as a Freemason helmet with a satin attire, or a military uniform and cap with the Founder's religious symbols and an order's masked veil. There was even a concept for a leader resembling a Catholic Cardinal, which may or may not be meant as the Resurrector, one of Siren's earlier revised concepts.

The prelaunch mural.

• The Washington mural was seen in early gameplay demos, but has since been altered. The subtitle IT IS OUR HOLY DUTY TO GUARD AGAINST THE FOREIGN HORDES has been removed. In addition, the symbols of the Cross (Faith), Dove (Purity), Arrows (Defense), and Wheatsheaf (Prosperity), have been replaced with Scroll (Wisdom), Eye (Faith), Sword (Defense) and Key (Discovery), respectively.
• The Latin motto is intended to mean "We dare defend our country", but contains a grammatical error. "Patria nostra" can either be the nominative, ablative or vocative case. This only allows for translations such as "We dare to defend with the help of our country" or "Oh Our country, we dare to defend!". For the intended meaning, it should have been in the accusative case, "patriam nostram".
  • The Order of the Raven's motto is similar to that of the real-life state of Alabama: Audemus jura nostra defendere, meaning "We dare defend our rights".
• A flask of Unknown Booze can be found in the bar of the Order's headquarters. If the player acts quickly after imbibing it, they should be able to achieve the Achievement/Trophy "Lost Weekend" in a single game.

  

  The in-game painting.

• The ambient noise in the Raven headquarters is actually a song slowed down significantly. Speeding up the environmental sound to 1000% or 800% results in a distinct singing voice with guitar. This is also present in one of the houses in the Comstock Center Rooftops.

American Progress

• One of the paintings in the entry hall of the building bears a striking resemblance to the 21st President of the United States, Chester A. Arthur. Ole Peter Hansen Balling's 1881 portrait of Chester A. Arthur was used as a basis for this painting and it is not intended to be President Arthur.
• The Washington portrait in flowing white robes is heavily inspired by the 1872 John Gast painting American Progress depicting an allegory for Manifest Destiny and Westward expansion. Much of the painting served as the base of the portrait and traces of the original can be seen in the river and trains on the right as well as the partially covered up telegraph line and additional train on the lower right.
  • Close examination of the soldiers at the bottom of the portrait show Union soldiers incongruously waving Confederate flags. The blue-suited soldiers appear to be multiple copies of a stock image of modern Civil War reenactors in bright, overhead sunlight. The same soldier images were reused and flipped horizontally for the Lincoln portrait.